


the accident

by Rouhn



Category: Once Upon a Time (TV)
Genre: Accident, Comfort, F/M, Tumblr Prompt, a bit angst
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-03-13
Updated: 2018-03-13
Packaged: 2019-03-30 18:44:51
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,152
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13957689
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Rouhn/pseuds/Rouhn
Summary: Killian's little niece, Chloe had an accident. As quickly as possible he rushes to the ER.- based on the prompt: Emma is a doctor and Killian rush his niece/nephew to the hospital because of some accident and he is blaming himself because that happened while he was babysitting. Maybe kind of angsty, with worried Killian?





	the accident

“Uncle Killian!” Becca’s scream made Killian drop the tray.

 

“Becca? Becca!” As fast as possible, he ran towards the tree house only to find Becca kneeling over her bigger sister, who was lying unconscious on the ground with a big wound on her forehead.

 

“Bloody hell, Becca, what happened?” He kneeled down next to his nieces and touched Chloe’s face. “Chloe, Chloe can you hear me?”

 

She didn’t react so he (for him) did the only logical thing, he scooped her up and rushed towards his car, yelling at Becca to follow him.

 

“Swan, Dr. Emma Swan, where is Dr. Swan?” Killian burst into the ER, his unconscious niece in his arms, the other one clinging to his feet, wrapped in his overly large leather jacket.

 

“Sir! Sir, calm down, what happened?” A nurse approached them looking at the young girl in his arms, but Killian only pulled her closer ignoring the woman completely.

 

“Emma! Emma Swan!” He yelled again, completely out of his mind.

 

“Dr. Swan is in an examination; she-“

 

“I don’t care, call her,” he replied angrily. “Swan! Swan!”

The nurse shook her head, pointing at Chloe. “Tell me what happened. Please, calm down and talk to me.” The nurse’s voice was calm and steady; it was clear that he wasn’t the first nervous man rushing into the ER with an injured kid in his arms.

 

“Emma Swan! I need Dr. Emma Swan. SWAN!” Killian yelled again when he suddenly saw her. He pushed forward, running towards his best friend who watched him, shocked. 

 

“Killian! Oh my god, Chloe! What happened?” She nodded towards the nurse and led Killian to an empty examination room. He followed her quickly, laying his niece down on the bed.

 

“I don’t know, I found her under the treehouse. I- I don’t know what happened.” He looked at Becca who was still holding on his leg for dear life. He pulled her up into his arms gently, soothing her by rubbing her back slowly, cradling her head and kissing her tear-stained cheeks. “What happened, Princess?”

 

“She- she fell.” Becca’s answer was vague, quiet and completely atypical for her.

Emma slowly walked over, looking at Becca. She wiped her tears, putting on a bright smile. 

 

“So, she just fell? Did she miss a step or was she looking down and fell?” Emma looked from Becca to Killian and back, he could tell that something was wrong.

 

“She was angry at me and wanted to be alone, but I told her the treehouse was also mine and I wanted to climb up too,” the little girl in Killian’s arms started to speak again, “she was so angry with me that she started to pull up the ladder.” Becca buried her face in Killian’s shoulder. He rubbed her back in soothing circles, exchanging a questioning look with Emma.

 

“Killian, how about you call Liam and I take care of Rebecca for a while? He has to know that his daughter is here.” She opened her arms and Killian transferred his younger niece to Emma. With a nod and a kiss to Becca’s head, he left the room with one last concerned look at Chloe.

 

.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

 

Killian was nervous; he had never heard his brother so angry. He knew it was his fault that his niece was lying in a hospital bed right now, but he was worried too. He loved his nieces as if they were his own children, and he understood that Liam was mad at him and concerned; he would have been the same.

 

Rebecca was still with Emma, so he was sitting on one of these uncomfortable chairs in front of the examination room. All he knew was that Chloe had a broken arm, that she woke up a little while ago and that they had to do more tests. She had to stay, at least for this night.

 

Killian ran a hand over his face. He only left the girls alone to make them sandwiches, he never thought one of them could get injured in the ten minutes he wasn’t watching them. It wasn’t like they were too little to be left alone for a moment - quite the contrary. Chloe was nearly twelve and Rebecca was eight. He often helped Liam and made the housework while the girls were in their rooms or playing in the garden. Never before something happened.

 

Nervously, Killian tapped his hand on his foot, looking from the door where Chloe laid behind to the end of the corridor and back. When he finally saw his brother, he jumped up and rushed towards him.

 

“Liam! Thank god you are here. Chloe is in here with Emma and- Liam?”    
  
Killian suddenly noticed Liam’s stern look. He didn’t even look at him; he only pushed forward and knocked on the door.

 

“Liam? Liam, please, talk to me.”

 

When the door opened, Liam stepped inside, but when Killian wanted to follow him, Liam turned around and stopped him.

 

“I think you did enough here. I don’t want you near my girls anymore. Just- go.”

 

Killian stopped dead in his tracks, looking at his brother shocked. He could see how furious he was and he could also see the disappointment in his eyes. Killian looked over his brother's shoulder, seeing Emma and Becca standing next to Chloe’s bed, staring at them with wide eyes.

 

“Daddy!” Becca ran towards Liam, hugging his middle and burying her face in his stomach. While Liam kneeled down and pulled her into a bear hug, Killian’s eyes fell on Emma. She was talking to Chloe briefly before their eyes connected once again. She slowly walked over to him, but before she was able to say anything, Liam stood up again and closed the door. 

 

Killian inhaled sharply, staring at the closed door in front of his face with watery eyes. Not able to stay at the hospital any longer, he turned around and ran.

 

_ “Failure - idiot - incapable.” _ The little voice in Killian's head made him run - run as fast and as far away as possible. Liam was right. He hurt his niece, he didn’t watch her properly and now she was in the hospital. What had he done? He rushed outside, deeply inhaling the fresh air to calm his nerves, but it didn’t work. 

 

All the people around him, their noises, the sounds of the ambulances and the chaos made him feel even worse. He decided to head home; he wasn’t useful here and he wasn’t welcome. On his way home, he stopped at a liquor store, buying a bottle of rum to drown his thoughts in.

 

.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.

 

Three hours later he was still sitting on the floor in front of his couch, staring at the full bottle of rum. He wished nothing more than to call Liam or Emma or the hospital to check on Chloe. Instead, he sat there, staring at the bottle, recalling the accident again and again. He was sure if he tried hard enough he would find the answer to how he could have prevented it.

 

Lost in his thoughts, he didn’t notice that the door opened. He didn’t notice the red leather jacket lying on his couch or the body sitting next to him. He only realised he wasn’t alone anymore when he heard her voice.

 

“It wasn’t your fault, Killian. Chloe is alright. She only has to stay overnight to make sure she has no concussion. Liam overreacted.” 

 

He didn’t move, didn’t respond either.

 

“Killian, look at me. Please, look at me. There was nothing you could have done. It wasn’t your fault, it was an accident and Chloe is going to be okay.  Liam knows that I think he was just shocked hearing that his daughter was in the hospital. ”

 

He still didn’t move, the words slowly sinking in, but they were too weak against the loud inner turmoil which raged inside him. When he felt a warm hand on his face, he finally came back to his senses and turned his head,  leaning into her touch .

 

“ I am sorry Liam shut you out,” Emma murmured and started to caress his cheek. “I am sorry I didn’t come after you, but I had to stay with Chloe. I told Liam that his behaviour was wrong - that the accident wasn’t your fault, but he didn’t listen. ”

 

“But it  _ was _ my fault, Swan. I should have watched the girls. I shouldn’t have allowed them to play in the garden alone. I should have been there.” Big fat tears started to roll over Killian’s cheeks, staining his already soaked shirt.

 

“Oh, Killian, no, it wasn’t your fault. It was an accident.” Emma pulled him closer, stroking his back when she felt his arms going around her. He started to sob, pulling her close and staining her shirt instead of his now.

 

“It was my fault, Swan. I should have watched them better. Liam hates me now and will never allow me to see them or watch them again. I love them so much.” Killian sobbed into her shirt making Emma bite her lower lip. 

 

“I know that you love them. They love you too and also Liam loves you. He might be angry now but he will calm down and you will see before you know it you will watch the girls again when he is working.” She soothed him, stroking his back and holding him close.

 

He knew she was right but he also knew his brother. He wasn’t the one forgiving that easily, he was a single dad and his girls meant everything to him. Killian could understand and yet he wished he could show Liam how much the girls meant to him. 

 

He continued crying until he ran out of tears, he wished he had opened the rum, he wished he had drowned his sorrows in the amber liquid but now it was too late for that. He was grateful that Emma was here. She was always there when he needed her (Sometimes also when he didn’t need her, but that was a whole other story.) She was his best friend, the one he could always depend on.

 

“Thank you, Swan,” he suddenly broke the silence, looking up into her emerald eyes. He knew he must look horrible - red-rimmed eyes, tear-stained face and unruly hair, but he had to tell her and it seemed she didn’t mind his appearance or his vulnerability. 

 

“What for?” She brushed back his fringe, looking at him with soft eyes. 

 

“For being here with me, for trying to defend me against my brother, helping me with Chloe and Becca and so much more. I could go on for ages if you want to, but-”

 

To say he was shocked when her lips suddenly silenced him was an understatement. He was more than shocked, well surprised and irritated and yeah, shocked might be the right word, but before he could think about it properly or react to the kiss at all, Emma leaned back, staring into his eyes.

 

“You are very welcome, Killian. And just for the record, there is nowhere I want to be more than here with you.” She smiled at him. An open and genuine smile before she shrugged her shoulders. “Okay, maybe I would prefer the couch over this hard floor.”

 

Suddenly Killian started to laugh, he pushed himself up and pulled Emma into his arms. “You are incorrigible.” He took a loose strand of her hair and twirled it between two fingers before he put it behind her ear still smiling at her. “So, Chloe is going to be okay?”

 

Emma nodded her head and stepped closer. “Yes, Killian. She asked for you and also Becca asked where you went. Give Liam a few days and you will see they will welcome you with open arms.”

 

.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.

 

Emma had been right (like always). Two weeks later Killian sat with Emma, Chloe, Becca and Liam in Liam’s garden, drawing a little pirate ship on Chloe's plastered arm, listening to Becca’s narrations about the x-ray and the plaster room. The little girl was so much more excited than her injured sister that she announced then and there that she also wanted to become a doctor like her Auntie Em.

 

Emma blushed, even more, when Killian leaned over, took her hand and intertwined their fingers, kissing her cheek and staring at her proudly. Liam and his elder daughter exchanged a quick look before he clapped Killian on his shoulder. “At least  _ this _ you finally did properly.”

 

Killian looked confused, especially when his younger niece jumped up and hugged him tightly. “It was about bloody time,” she mimicked him, making everyone laugh, except Killian who was too lost in confusion. He was happy being allowed to see his nieces again and he was happy having his brother forgive him. He was surrounded by the people he loved the most and he was relieved that everything turned out alright. 

  
  


**Author's Note:**

> thanks to Hannah (@hookedonapirate) for beta reading it and also for caring ;) :*


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